Beck's a great story, basically about this kid who gets into a band. It's really inspiring and down to earth. The day to day crap was really relatable and was almost enjoyable to watch because even though bad things happens to Koyuki (I think he even says at some point 'when it rains it really pours for me' or something) he still doesn't get majorly depressed and looks at the situation positively.
I also thought that the passion for music was successfully transferred to the reader and at some points I really wanted to pick up a guitar and start playing, though I don't know how. Some of the ways they related to the American music industry was kind of gimmicky, but it was pulled off a lot better than I've seen else where, like they won't just throw out some musician's name just so that the reader's like 'ooo they know who that is!!!' which I find largely annoying, but the people they did incorporate were given a couple of lines to explain who they were and how they fit into the story so it wasn't that bad. The story did feel like it was dragging on in some places, but those were usually the places that the guitar guy was being a douche, but it gets resolved so I guess you just have to suffer through it (though the story usually makes up for the suffering, and I guess it could be seen as a good kind of tension). I'm not done it yet so I don't know if I'm satisfied with it yet, but there are a few indicators of a happy ending so I think it'll pay off. So to sum up... give this one a shot.
I've always liked tool, but this album came together for a bit better than did their other albums. Some songs were almost transcendental. Some of the songs really make you slow down, or even stop what you're doing or thinking about and just listen. The prime example of this for me on this CD was Lost Keys. That song isn't just a song... it's an experience. It's like, the listener is in the head of someone who is lost, confused, scared and lonely. It was brilliant how they got the doctors to talk over the music to the 'main character', but the music over powers their words with the over bearing emotion so that while you hear the words, you don't care about them, because the voices don't care about you and don't understand what you're going through. They just want to 'deal with you' and get you out of there. ... It gets me every time. But it's good. Vicarious is another good one. If not buy the CD, make sure you listen to some songs (in my opinion the ones I mentioned hold the highest priority, of course).
I really enjoyed this compilation. I'm usually hesitant in the compilation department because I enjoy variation... I can't listen to the same kind of music for too long without getting somewhat frustrated, but this collection was great! So many different genres were represented, and by fabulous artists no less. They have the classics like the band, The Guess Who, Rush and such, but they also have modern stuff like Barenaked Ladies, Our Lady Peace and Great Big Sea. There are also the much appreciated presence of artists such as Susan Aglukark, Snow, and Ashley Macisaac. ... it's good.
Of course it doesn't have everything... it's true completion could only come with some hard core metal.. which they understandably lack (as it's not exactly mainstream or easy listening.. but w/e)
This is the first of this series I've encountered, but I think I will check the others out. Decent overview.
